Now we are in the final part of the Design Thinking process. We walk through the process step by step on a weekly basis. But there are still some very interesting aspects about it, which needs to be mentioned. What is real strength in Design Thinking. It is not just a process to follow. There is much more in it.
Take a step back
If your idea is not working just go back and try again. In my opinion this is one of major strengths in Design Thinking method. This is not a strict process which you need to follow from the beginning until the end. You should do whatever is required. You can jump back and forth. If a test did not work well you can jump back and start generating new ideas again. If you completely misunderstand the requirements, go back to the point of view and start a new run. Redefine the problem and go testing again. So a complete fail of the prototype does not mark the end of the project. Accept what happened, improve the results and start again.
A really strong feature of Design Thinking. But this requires a culture to accept failure and need a different way of thinking. But if you can manage these, there will be a big chance to produce wonderful results.
Diverse Team
Next to the way you work it is also essential who is participating in your design thinking team. The Design Thinking concept is working with a diverse team of different thinker. This is an important feature of the process. If you can build a very diverse team you will create the best possible results. But this does not mean different people of a single team. Try to get people from very different backgrounds. Experience, Work, hobbies, Age,….. Soon you will see the power in the combination in your team. The diversity in the team is the strength for impressive results. Bring them together, get to know each other and then start producing ideas. You will be impressed by the results.
Open Space
As a last point in this article, I want to mention the whole process of effective Design Thinking can only work if you work in the right environment. An open and flexible space to work at. The room is changing and developing itself while going through the process. You start in a very clean location and will form the room more and more. Later on you will have posters and a walls covered with Notes and Sketches. This is a very important part in Design Thinking. The workplace should not limit your way of creative thinking. An open Space concept will support you. It will act as some kind of carrier for your thoughts to create wonderful results and supportive solutions.
So over all
So in this article I wanted to highlight 3 topics in Design thinking which are major aspects in the method. Flexible working, diverse team and the open developing space. For me the real power in the process and also a reason why is it much better then some other methods and strictly aligned work streams.
There will be another article including a more focused article on a management perspective. Helping you to find right arguments for your first Design thinking project.
